Fort Campbell, KY – The wrestling season officially began for the Fort Campbell Falcons Tuesday evening. The Falcons wrestling team hit the mats and hosted their first tournament against Evansville’s FJ Reitz Panthers.

The Falcons had a solid showing in their season opener, but it was not enough to tame the Panthers. The Falcons fell to the Panthers 48.0 – 28.0.

Fort Campbell High School Wrestling season opener. (Fort Campbell Sports)

“We wrestled a tough team tonight and came up short,” Falcons coach Anthony Shingler said. “We started six new kids in our lineup tonight and they got a feel for a big time varsity match.”

Ki Ryder, the 170 lb wrestler who committed to Wheeling Jesuit University in West Virginia earlier this year, was one of several Falcon team members who earned points with victories in the tournament. Ryder won by major decision 12-2.

At 120 lbs, Anthony Dewitt was one of three Falcons to win with pins.

Shingler was pleased with his team’s effort in the loss.

“The effort is there,” Shingler said. “We have a group of kids with a can-do and a fighting attitude. We have mistakes to correct and we will get them corrected to push towards our goals as a team. I am proud of the kids for battling against a team to start the season.”

About Marlon Scott

Marlon Scott is a freelance journalist and writer. He graduated from Austin Peay State University in 2011 with a B.S. in Communications, majoring in Communication Arts with a concentration in print and web journalism.

His writing career began as a sports writer for The All State, the APSU student newspaper, in 2006. He continued working for the paper until his graduation, serving in various positions including Sports Editor and Editor-in-Chief.

In 2010, Scott contributed stories and photographs as well as designed and served as Editor-in-Chief for the monograph, Civic Art of Clarksville: The stories behind the pieces.